Not an Angel
by Aliora
Summary: Oneshot written for the 31 Days community on livejournal with the prompt 'dreaming of angels'. Slight NaruMai bias, ensemble. Mai's in a pinch. [COMPLETE]


**A/N: **Written for the 31 Days challenge comm at livejournal, using the April 15 prompt, 'dreaming of angels'. This contains mild spoilers for volume 4 (I think) and is set midway through the anime, after Naru has run the tests on Mai. The anime never really explained how the rest of the gang learned who visited Mai in her dreams, and this is one attempt to fill that blank. (I'm also sorry for the use of "Bou-san" even in the narrative, but it felt too weird to use his actual name). It was meant to be a drabble but grew on its own, so apologies for the breezy style – I've always been lax with writing details and it seems I'll never learn. Regardless, hope you enjoy!

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"It was the husband!" protested Ayako, raising herself to her full height. "I don't have to have tea and biscuits with the victim to figure that much out."

Masako made a polite noise of dissent that Mai thought sounded suspiciously like a snort. "And we will trust your judgement based on your rate of success in previous collaborations?"

_Ouch_. Beside Mai, Bou-san winced. "That Masako's got a real way with words, hasn't she?" he asked her in low tones. "Of course, it doesn't help that Ayako makes herself such an easy target."

Ayako spun on her heel, waving a furious finger in their general direction. "I heard that!" she bellowed. "And I don't appreciate comments like that from someone like_ you_."

Bou-san raised his hands in a placating gesture. "Now, now, no need to get snappy." He paused and cocked his head. "Hey, what did you mean, someone like _me_?"

Mai sent an imploring look to where Lin was hunched over his computer, but he'd angled himself in such a way that his back was to the argument. She tried a bit longer, but if he felt anything, he gave no sign of it. Apparently her unpredictable psychic powers didn't extend to telepathy, if that's even what she'd been doing. She frowned. What did you call pushing a feeling at someone? 'Projected empathy', maybe? There was probably a proper term for it that involved random combinations of letters and numbers but the specifics escaped her. What had they been again, SK? PS?

"Mai."

She snapped back to the present to find Naru's face very close to her own, a faint line of annoyance creasing his brow. From his look and tone it hadn't been the first time he'd called her, and her cheeks flushed at the indignity of having been caught daydreaming. Again.

"N-Naru!" She gave him her best yes-I-_was_-paying-attention smile and sat up straighter in her chair. "You were saying?"

He didn't sigh (for once, she noted in some surprise) and instead stepped back before turning to address the group.

"John isn't coming," he told them without preamble, ignoring Mai's shocked intake of breath. "I contacted him but he has a Church conference and a diocese from Australia has specifically requested his attendance."

Well, that sounded...impressive. Mai had always thought that John must be unusually talented to be a priest _and_ an exorcist at such a young age, but she might actually have underestimated his skills. Either way, if John wasn't coming—

"How do you plan on performing the required exorcism?" asked Masako, her voice perfectly calm.

Ayako, standing opposite, still looked put out from their conversation earlier. She crossed her arms and raised a scornful eyebrow. "Are you offering?"

Masako shook her head, the action causing her hair to ripple with the motion. "I am afraid that is not possible. I have mentioned in the past that I am unable to perform successive possessions and I am yet to regain my strength from this morning."

Mai brought a hand up to tug furtively at her own hair. It almost wasn't fair – Masako's hair was so straight and silky and she always appeared so composed and –

"Mai."

"Ah!" She shot to her feet and overbalanced, the momentum pushing her forward and down until she was toppling to the floor. She scrunched her eyes shut and braced herself for the inevitable impact when her nose connected solidly with something else instead.

Slightly winded, she waited a moment before opening her eyes. Black...everything was black...

"Ah!" she cried again, backpedalling. Light returned instantly and she found herself blushing for the second time in as many minutes, because the thing that had stopped her from falling right over was the convenient placement of Naru's chest.

She sank bonelessly into her chair and pretended to examine her shoes. Mmm, white leather. Ooh, laces. Wah, _Naru's chest!_

Before Naru could sigh or say something cutting or a skilful combination of both, Bou-san cleared his throat. "So," he said jovially as Mai sent him a quick, thankful glance, "how are we going to do this?"

Ayako bristled. "Nice to see you automatically assume that _I_ won't be any help."

Masako made the noise again, but before a full-blown war could erupt, Naru cut in. "Your skills won't be required this time, Matsuzaki-san. I have something else in mind."

Masako's calm expression changed and it took a moment for Mai to figure out that she was now displaying mild interest. "What do you propose, Naru?"

"It's simple, really." He turned until he was looking at Mai. "Mai, go to sleep."

She nearly fell off the chair again. "_Huh?_"

Bou-san tugged at his chin. "Hmm, that might even be a good idea."

"Yes." Naru accepted the compliment as if he'd been expecting it – and, Mai thought sourly, he probably _had_ been. "Hara-san needs time to recuperate and Mai can use that window to sleep and gather the information we need for the case."

Mai swallowed. "I can't just sleep on demand!" she protested.

"You've never had any trouble in the past," Naru pointed out flatly.

Yeah, well. "That's different," she muttered mutinously.

Naru said nothing, simply choosing to look at her as if he knew she'd crack under the weight of his gaze. And, she thought, more sourly this time, he probably _did_.

"Fine." She really did want to help solve the case. If Masako tired of baiting Ayako she might say a thing or two about Mai not pulling her weight, and that wouldn't be fun for _anyone_. "But don't blame me if he doesn't choose to help."

Everyone stared. "He?" Naru echoed sharply. "What do you mean?"

Whoops! "Well," she hedged, floundering a bit, "um...well, you could say that I have a...helper."

"Like a spirit guide?" At some point Lin had joined their group and his one visible eye seemed to bore into hers.

She scratched her head and gave an embarrassed laugh. "Um, I guess so. Yeah."

Naru looked unconvinced. "And? What form does this guide take?"

"Eh heh." Mai wondered how to phrase it. "Someone I know..."

"Know?" Naru was in full inquisition mode, picking up on every little thing. Mai appreciated his attention to detail when they were working but found it rather inconvenient now. "So this person is not dead?"

She briefly entertained the incongruous image of a zombie Naru before shaking her head, thoroughly disturbed. "Definitely _not_," she said emphatically. "He's very much alive."

Naru didn't move but nevertheless managed to convey exasperation in his very stance. "It could be important, Mai. You should tell us who this person is."

Mai cast around frantically for evasion techniques – even a witty, distracting remark would do! – but her internal struggle yielded nothing. She gulped.

As if he wasn't already narcissistic enough! To have to tell him that _he_ visited her dreams would send his ego through the roof. She'd never hear the end of it; in fact, she could just imagine the scenarios...

"_I see you're not working," he'd say, in passing at the office. "Too busy dreaming of me?"_

"_Of course," he'd say, if her dream-visions helped solve a case. "The answer was obvious to me all along. The me in Mai's dreams, I mean."_

Argh! Mai shook her head and stiffened her resolve. She had to avoid _that_ at all costs.

"I am absolutely sure that the form of the person in my dreams doesn't matter." Naru gave her another look. "And to prove it, I'll tell Bou-san. In private." She reached over and grabbed the monk's sleeve. "He can decide if it's important or not."

She dragged him towards Naru, who was standing close to the door. After a moment, Naru nodded and stepped aside.

"Oh, and Mai?"

She paused with her fingers on the handle.

"Don't waste too much more of our time."

Spinning on her heel to give him a piece of her mind, she was fielded neatly by Bou-san, who trapped her hands and steered her outside.

"Easy!" he said, moving them down the hallway. "Scratch his eyes out _after_ you've told me about this spirit guide. I want to hear all about the angel in your dreams!"

_Angel?_ Mai's mind shut down at the very thought. She certainly didn't feel that way, and she was pretty certain Bou-san's tune was going to change as soon as she told him the truth. She was also fairly sure no one in their right mind had _ever_ confused Naru for an angel. Although, she scowled, feeling a sense of impotent bitterness, no one else she knew was that good-looking, intelligent and self-assured. There might be something paranormal about him.

"Not an angel," she corrected wryly, shaking off the idea. "Just someone we're both acquainted with who knows pretty much everything. Only in my dreams he actually _helps_ me instead of keeping us in the dark until the great reveal."

She watched Bou-san's face as he processed her words, and burst out laughing when the penny finally dropped, his eyes widening in stunned disbelief.

He looked like he was struggling for words. "N-Na--"

"Shhh!" Mai clapped her hand over his mouth and sent a furtive look over her shoulder. She wouldn't put it past Naru to have followed them outside. Actually, she considered, he probably would have just sent Lin. Either way she didn't want anyone's sharp ears picking up on the conversation and she gave Bou-san a furious look before removing her hand. "Don't tell anyone!"

He blinked a few times. "I can see why you didn't want to announce that to the group." Slowly his lips curved into a grin. "You know he'd never let you live that down."

"Don't remind me." Her own mouth tugged into a smile and she jerked her head back at the house. "Should we go back now?"

Nodding, he slung an arm around her shoulders and together they made their way up the stairs. "I'll tell him it's not important," he said reassuringly when they reached the door. Opening it, he flashed her a grin. "Because you're right, we really don't need Naru knowing that _he's_ the one who..."

Bou-san trailed off. Mai tried desperately to wrench her eyes away from the people in the room but for some reason they seemed determined to catalogue everyone's reaction. Masako brought a sleeve up to conceal her mouth. Ayako's mouth fell open in an unattractive gape. Lin apparently had something eating his computer, judging by his hasty retreat back to the desk. And Naru...

Cheeks flaming, Mai chanced a look at Naru, but the smirk she had anticipated was nowhere to be seen. Instead, he looked vaguely evaluating. Or indifferent. Or unimpressed. It had always been difficult to read his moods.

Beside her, Bou-san fidgeted nervously. "I'm sorry, Mai," he whispered. She barely registered the apology; she was too concerned with mental travel arrangements to distant, isolated lands. Maybe she could go to Australia? Naru wouldn't be able to find her there.

No, her mind corrected, that was no good. He'd found John. He'd find her too! Dammit! Maybe...South Africa?

Before she could brush up on her Afrikaans, Naru had shrugged an elegant shoulder and turned away from the door. "You were right, Mai," he said disinterestedly. "It wasn't important."

She stared. Had she heard that right? Had the most narcissistic person she'd ever met just _brushed off an admission like that?_ Something wasn't adding up. Maybe he'd changed. Maybe he'd found some humility somewhere. Or maybe--

"Although it certainly does explain a lot." He glanced back at her. "I should have known you'd need my help to figure those cases out."

That bastard! Mai bared her teeth and leapt at him, Bou-san just managing to reach her before she could do any damage. Guiding spirit? Guardian angel? Nothing could be further from the truth!

Ignoring her, Naru addressed the others. "Let's leave Mai alone for a while. She still needs to sleep." They filed out the door obediently, Masako shooting her a chilling look as she glided past. Bou-san lowered her gently to the floor before following them outside. She scowled after him - it would be a long time before she could forgive his slip - and tried to pretend Naru hadn't stayed behind.

He paused, hand on the doorknob. "Sweet dreams." Then he slipped outside.

Dazed, Mai sank cross-legged to the floor. She felt thoroughly exhausted, like all the energy had been leeched from her bones. She had to ignore everything that had just happened. She had to think about something else, or nothing at all...

Almost before she knew it, she had settled herself comfortably on the ground. As her eyes drifted shut she realised that even now she was doing as Naru had instructed, going to sleep as per his demand.

And then, suddenly it didn't really matter. The room faded to nothing as will o' the wisps filled the air, and her anger was forgotten. Because he was smiling as he walked towards her, coat flapping in the nonexistent breeze, and maybe, just maybe, _angel_ had been the right word after all.


End file.
